I can convey your cookbook author’s voice and style whilst applying the appropriate format or content adaptations for a Spanish audience. I translate from French and English into European Spanish and possess a wide culinary translation portfolio that spans cookbook translation and localisation, menu translation, culinary journalism translation, food research translation, food blog translation and food marketing localisation.
Cookbook translation and localisation experience
2022: Translation of Cook this Book, American English into Spanish
A beautiful, educational and innovative American cookbook by the great Molly Baz. Amongst other aspects of cookbook translation, it involved:
- the transcreation of the author’s original style, including a ton of American slang
- the recreation of recipe introductions that read like restaurant critic descriptions
- the transcription and translation of the educational videos accompanying the book
- the technical translation of recipe instructions:
- extremely detailed instructions and measurements
- adaptation of oven temperatures
- adaptation of imperial measurements (except for the desserts area, already done by the author)
- adaptation of various ingredients and suggestion of substitutes to the author
- contextualisation of foreign references and ingredients to help Spanish readers
- sticking to word limits so the translation would match the original layout page-by-page.
Looking for a new cookbook or a present?
Read a review of Cocina este libro in El País newspaper.
Read reviews of Cook This Book on Amazon.
2018: Translated a sample of La Tartine Gourmande, American English and French into Spanish
Translated 6000 words of La Tartine Gourmande for my MA dissertation. This is a favourite gluten free recipe book written for an American public by Béatrice Peltre, a French author resident in the US.
I researched and discussed the translation of mixed-genre cookbooks (from how to deal with culture-specific items and differing genre conventions among different countries to how to represent the author’s voice) and was awarded a distinction for both my research and translation.
Other culinary translation experience
The above MA dissertation on cookbook translation was followed by a 3-month specialisation course in gastronomy translation. In time would follow a 4-week course in wine translation, short monographic courses about chocolate, tea, olive oil, protocol and the history of cookbooks and, in 2023, a specialisation course in pâtisserie translation and a 3-month course on professional book proofreading.
Testimonial
“After revising several of Pili’s translations, I can certify that she is a true professional. Punctual and meticulous, she conducts in-depth research (a must in culinary translation), incorporates additional information to fill cultural gaps and adapts to the demands of each text. Her bilingualism is another great asset since she has a perfect command of the Spanish and British languages and cultures, something crucial when translating culinary texts, where cultural-specific concepts crop up that are extremely difficult to transfer from one language to another. Thanks to her cultural and linguistic expertise, Pili easily surmounts this obstacle, producing natural, easy to read and understand texts. She is also responsible, friendly, courteous and diligent and I have no hesitation in recommending her work”.
(Rosa Llopis, ex tutor at Trágora Formación)
Check out the food and drink translation services pages.
I want to discuss my book’s translation or proofreading:
More about cookbook translation on the blog.